Why speleothem δ¹⁸O records miss 100,000-year climate cycles in Southern China

A new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences solves a long-standing climate mystery: Why don’t the records of oxygen isotopes (δ18O) in cave formations like stalagmites—known as speleothems—from central southern China reflect the well-known 100,000-year cycles of ice ages seen in other global climate records? These speleothem δ18O records have long been considered a key indicator of the strength of the Asian summer monsoon, so their failure to show these major climate shifts has puzzled scientists for decades.

This post was originally published on this site

The Owl Picks